12 Bar Blues (album)
Encyclopedia
12 Bar Blues is the debut solo album from Stone Temple Pilots
singer Scott Weiland
. Its sound and style differs greatly from his band's releases. The design concept of the cover is a homage to the cover design of John Coltrane's
Blue Train
album. The title name comes from the simple chord progression
known as "Twelve-bar blues."
's 120 Minutes
, Weiland states that his then brother-in-law introduced him to Blair Lamb, the one who co-produced 12 Bar Blues with Weiland.
, the album was a commercial failure, but achieved some critical acclaim. Stephen Erlewine of allmusic gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, declaring "12 Bar Blues is an unpredictable, carnivalesque record confirming that Weiland was the visionary behind STP's sound. He's fascinated by sound, piling on layers of shredded guitars, drum loops, and keyboards, making sure that each song sounds drastically different from its predecessor." David Fricke of Rolling Stone
awarded the album 3.5 out of 5 stars and declared that "12 Bar Blues isn't really a rock album, or even a pop album. Weiland, out on his own, has simply made an honest album – honest in its confusion, ambition and indulgence. It was worth the risk." but also remarked that "Maybe it's a little early for Scott Weiland to be going the solo way." Historian Piero Scaruffi
gave it a 7 out of 10 and claimed that "12 Bar Blues is a noble work in the tradition of "lo-fi" songwriters like Robert Pollard
and Beck
, a collection of quirky ditties with lively and inventive arrangements." He later listed the album as being one of the best rock albums of the 90s.
Stone Temple Pilots
Stone Temple Pilots is an American rock band from San Diego, California that consists of Scott Weiland , brothers Robert DeLeo and Dean DeLeo , and Eric Kretz ....
singer Scott Weiland
Scott Weiland
Scott Weiland is an American musician, lyricist, and vocalist, most notable for his work with Grammy Award-winning rock band Stone Temple Pilots. Weiland is also known for his five-year career with supergroup Velvet Revolver as well as his own solo career...
. Its sound and style differs greatly from his band's releases. The design concept of the cover is a homage to the cover design of John Coltrane's
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
Blue Train
Blue Train (album)
Blue Train is a hard bop jazz album by John Coltrane, released in 1957 on Blue Note Records, catalogue BLP 1577. Recorded at the Van Gelder Studio in Hackensack, New Jersey, it is Coltrane's second solo album, the only one he recorded for Blue Note as a leader, and the only one he conceived...
album. The title name comes from the simple chord progression
Chord progression
A chord progression is a series of musical chords, or chord changes that "aims for a definite goal" of establishing a tonality founded on a key, root or tonic chord. In other words, the succession of root relationships...
known as "Twelve-bar blues."
Development
In a 1998 interview on MTVMTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's 120 Minutes
120 Minutes
120 Minutes is a television show in the United States dedicated to alternative music, originally airing on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then on MTV's sister channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003....
, Weiland states that his then brother-in-law introduced him to Blair Lamb, the one who co-produced 12 Bar Blues with Weiland.
Reception
Released in 1998 on Atlantic RecordsAtlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, the album was a commercial failure, but achieved some critical acclaim. Stephen Erlewine of allmusic gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, declaring "12 Bar Blues is an unpredictable, carnivalesque record confirming that Weiland was the visionary behind STP's sound. He's fascinated by sound, piling on layers of shredded guitars, drum loops, and keyboards, making sure that each song sounds drastically different from its predecessor." David Fricke of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
awarded the album 3.5 out of 5 stars and declared that "12 Bar Blues isn't really a rock album, or even a pop album. Weiland, out on his own, has simply made an honest album – honest in its confusion, ambition and indulgence. It was worth the risk." but also remarked that "Maybe it's a little early for Scott Weiland to be going the solo way." Historian Piero Scaruffi
Piero Scaruffi
Piero Scaruffi received a degree in Mathematics in 1982 from University of Turin, where he did work on the General Theory of Relativity. For a number of years he was the head of the Artificial Intelligence Center at Olivetti, based in Cupertino, California. He has been a visiting scholar at...
gave it a 7 out of 10 and claimed that "12 Bar Blues is a noble work in the tradition of "lo-fi" songwriters like Robert Pollard
Robert Pollard
Robert Pollard is an American rock musician and singer-songwriter who is the leader and creative force behind indie rock group Guided by Voices, who disbanded in 2004, only to reform in 2010...
and Beck
Beck
Beck Hansen is an American musician, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known by the stage name Beck...
, a collection of quirky ditties with lively and inventive arrangements." He later listed the album as being one of the best rock albums of the 90s.
Track listing
- All Songs Written By Scott Weiland (Foxy Dead Girl Music). Co-Writers in parenthesis.
- "Desperation #5" – 4:05
- "BarbarellaBarbarella (song)"Barbarella" is the only official single released from Scott Weiland's debut album 12 Bar Blues. The song is titled after the sci-fi film Barbarella, while the lyrics of the song pay homage to several science fiction television shows and movies....
" – 6:36 (Tony Castaneda) - "About Nothing" – 4:48 (Castaneda)
- "Where's the Man" – 4:55
- "Divider" – 4:23 (Victor Indrizzo; Famous Music Corp.)
- "Cool Kiss" – 4:55
- "The Date" – 5:21
- "Son" – 5:04 (Indrizzo; Famous Music Corp.) (dedicated to "Zack")
- "Jimmy Was a Stimulator" – 3:58
- "Lady, Your Roof Brings Me DownLady, Your Roof Brings Me Down"Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down" is a song by Scott Weiland first appearing on the Great Expectations Soundtrack and then later on his debut album 12 Bar Blues...
" – 5:26 (Indrizzo; Famous Music Corp.) - "Mockingbird Girl" – 5:02 (Jeff Nolan, Zander Schloss; UA Music Inc., Floated Music, EMI Virgin Music; "Its The Mega", United Lion Music, Sho Me Mo)
- "Opposite Octave Reaction" – 4:18
Track information
- An additional track entitled "Lazy Divey" was recorded for the album, and was included on some early promotional copies of the album.
- "Mockingbird Girl" was a re-recording of a song Weiland had originally recorded with The Magnificent Bastards for the 1995 Tank GirlTank Girl (film)Tank Girl is a 1995 science fiction action film loosely based on the Tank Girl comic book created by Alan Martin and Jamie Hewlett. It was directed by Rachel Talalay and stars Lori Petty as Rebecca Buck, aka the eponymous Tank Girl, who had originally appeared in the UK comic magazine...
soundtrack three years prior.
Personnel
- Scott WeilandScott WeilandScott Weiland is an American musician, lyricist, and vocalist, most notable for his work with Grammy Award-winning rock band Stone Temple Pilots. Weiland is also known for his five-year career with supergroup Velvet Revolver as well as his own solo career...
– lead vocals, beatbox, guitar, keyboards, piano, bass, synthesized bass, drum loops - Tracy Chisolm – theremin
- Blair Lamb – beatbox
- Holly Reiger – guitars
- Jeff Nolan, Zander Schloss – guitars
- Sheryl CrowSheryl CrowSheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
– accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist.... - Brad Mehldau – piano
- Peter DiStefano – guitars, bass
- Victor IndrizzoVictor IndrizzoVictor Indrizzo is an American session musician, primarily known for playing the drums, as well as a songwriter and producer.Indrizzo was born in Freeport, Long Island, New York...
– vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards, bass, drums - Daniel Lanois – synthesizers
- Tony Castaneda – guitars, bass
- Martyn LeNoble – bass, cello
- Michael Weiland – drums, percussion, drum loops
- Suzie Katayama – celloCelloThe cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
- Novi NovogNovi NovogNovi Novog, born in North Hollywood, California is an American viola player. She is sometimes simply credited as "Novi" and is the cousin of Lauren Wood .-Albums :...
– viola - Joel Derouin, Robin Lorentz – violin
Production
- Produced By Blair Lamb, Tracy Chisholm, Scott WeilandScott WeilandScott Weiland is an American musician, lyricist, and vocalist, most notable for his work with Grammy Award-winning rock band Stone Temple Pilots. Weiland is also known for his five-year career with supergroup Velvet Revolver as well as his own solo career...
& Daniel LanoisDaniel LanoisDaniel Lanois born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie... - Recording & Engineers: Chad Banford, Chris Goss, Tracy Chisolm
- Additional Engineers: Daniel Lanois, Jason Gladden, Tracy Chisolm, David Nottingham, Eric Greedy, Jeff Robinson, John Sorensen, Rafa Sardina, Reid Miller
- Mixing: Mark Howard, Daniel Lanois, Tracy Chisolm
- Mastering: Daniel Lanois, Mark Chalecki
Album
| Chart | Peak | |
|---|---|---|
| Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
42 | |
| New Zealand Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
47 |
Singles
| Year | Title | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down "Lady, Your Roof Brings Me Down" is a song by Scott Weiland first appearing on the Great Expectations Soundtrack and then later on his debut album 12 Bar Blues... " |
39 | — |
| "Barbarella Barbarella (song) "Barbarella" is the only official single released from Scott Weiland's debut album 12 Bar Blues. The song is titled after the sci-fi film Barbarella, while the lyrics of the song pay homage to several science fiction television shows and movies.... " |
36 | 194 |